The present invention is an improvement in a chair having adjustable height legs. Such a chair might be useful, for example, as a bathroom safety chair. More particularly, the present invention can be used in, for example, bathtubs or shower stalls such that a user can sit in the chair and bathe and shower with increased comfort and/or safety. Shower chairs are known in the art and are normally fabricated from a plastic material. Such chairs are useful for use with persons having decreased mobility or a desire for added comfort during showering.
It is also known in the art that the user of such chairs often find a benefit if the chair is of adjustable height. Therefore, a number of adjustable height bath chairs have been developed. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,475,256 discloses a shower transfer bench having a telescoping leg which locks in place with use of a locking button which can be selectively positioned in one of a series of locking holes associated therewith. The user selects the desired height of the bench by sliding an inner leg within an outer leg, and positioning the locking button in one of the locking holes carried by the outer leg. The leg is then locked at the desired location.
The telescoping/locking pin means of adjusting the height of a device such as a chair provides an effective means for height adjustment. However, such devices often prove difficult for a person with decreased manual dexterity to operate effectively. In order for the telescoped leg to be sufficiently locked at the desired location, the locking pin is often biased into the locking hole with great force. A person requiring a shower chair because of feebleness due to injury or the like, will often find manipulating a locking pin/locking hole arrangement very difficult.
A further drawback with such height adjusting devices is that if they are to be made of a plastic or other polymeric material, the adjusting mechanism components must normally be extensively machined or molded with complex molds. This increases the production times and costs for such devices.
Another means of adjusting the height of shower chairs has included the simple placement of a shoe under the chair legs. By selecting a shoe of appropriate height, the height of the shower chair can be adjusted. Such a system provides an efficient means of height adjustment with a minimum of manual dexterity, and hence is a very effective means for accomplishing the task. However, a drawback with this type of height adjustment is that in order to provide for a wide range of height adjustments, a large number of shoes would be required. That is, at each preselected height, four shoes would be required for a four legged chair.
Thus, the need exists for a safety and comfort shower chair the height of which can be selectively adjusted without the need for the placement of additional parts upon the device and without the need for great manual dexterity.